Nemesis

This exiled Amrican sures agrees with the sentiment of "Fleeing America." Get out while you can.

God for it and don't look back. What's the worse that can happen?

Maybe one day the oil supply will run out and the world will realize that they don't need it.

Peak Oil (we have reached in peak in the production of oil) was according to some, the reasonm the US went to war in Iraq.

Some people say we will never run out.

Time to decide which side your on, because wars are being fought over oil.

Maybe you need some stimulants to make a decent contribution.

I AM saying that because you have it backwards Nem.  Yes, the US Military will fight to protect the interest of the United States as any country would.

Excuse me there Mr. Caffiene: Protecting the interests of the people of the United States is quite a different from protecting the interests of the corporations domiciled in the US.

“I spent 33 years in the Marines. Most of my time being a high-class muscle man for Big Business, for Wall Street and the bankers. In short, I was a racketeer for capitalism. “I helped purify Nicaragua for the international banking house of Brown Brothers in 1909-1912. I helped make Mexico and especially Tampico safe for American oil interests in 1914. I brought light to the Dominican Republic for American sugar interests in 1916. I helped make Haiti and Cuba a decent place for the National City Bank boys to collect revenue in. I helped in the rape of half a dozen Central American republics for the benefit of Wall Street. “War is a racket.”

General Smedley D. Butler

former U.S. Marine Commandant

in Common Sense

November 1935

General Smedley was just that, a General in the Marines for 33 years. I'll take his word over yours any day. "War is a racket."

Maybe will get to find out how much oil the US is stealing from Iraq someday. Over $1 billion is missing in US taxpayer money in the bogus war effort so far.

<deleted>.  One example is the US invasion of Bosnia to stop a murderer bent on wiping out all Muslims!

Try looking at events Objectively rather than from your Subjective/Blame America First position, nemisis...

"A few examples of this are seen in the recent Qana massacre in Lebanon, and the death of more than 600,000 Iraqi children because of the shortage of food and medicine which resulted from the boycotts and sanctions against the Muslim Iraqi people, also their withholding of arms from the Muslims of Bosnia-Herzegovina leaving them prey to the Christian Serbians who massacred and raped in a manner not seen in contemporary history. Not to forget the dropping of the H-bombs on cities with their entire populations of children, elderly, and women, on purpose, and in a premeditated manner as was the case with Hiroshima and Nagasaki."

Osama bin Laden [From The Washington Post 8/23/98]

From the quote above, it appears the Bosnian Muslims were withheld arms from which to defend themselves and that is why the US troops went in, after thousands were slaughtered.

Seems to me you have trouble being objective. Can the US government do no wrong?

Don't go to the extreme view in sayng that I blame Anericans first. I blame the US government where blame is due - which the more I study the more I realize is substantially earned. What we are told in American history 101 is not what / why how things actually happened.

“The greatest crime since World War II has been U.S. foreign policy.”

Ramsey Clark

former U.S. Attorney General

For a certain amount of time i do know that what the world saw on tv and heard about this war was totally controlled by the coalition forces....why......

“Think of the press as a great keyboard on which the government can play.”

Joseph Goebbels

Nazi Propaganda Minister

Thailand is most likely a safe a place as any to be in the midst of a world wide conflagration. Fairly neutral in its stance agricultrual in base - food production transportation marketing localized.

Oil reserves nearby. Potential to produce alternative diesel fuel at hand.

Iran is next folks and about 30 - 40 other countries in the cross hairs of the US military to eliminate any possible competitors. Its all in their memos and strategic plans. All one has to do is read them.

Bush thinks "God wanted him to be president." Same thing Hitler said. With a crazy man and crazier men behind him, who can tell what will happen.?

A furious row has broken out over claims in a new book by BBC broadcaster James Naughtie that US Secretary of State Colin Powell described neo-conservatives in the Bush administration as '###### crazies' during the build-up to war in Iraq.

F*ckin' Crazies

More crap that you are soking up as fact from the press.

Get a clue Nem.

Sorry, the quote of bin Laden's cited was just that. from bin Laden. From the Muslim's perspective.

Please don't tell me that the oil companies don't utilize the US military to protect their oil investments. Please don't tell me that the US didn't bomb the entire length of the long sought after oil / gas pipeline in Afghanistan to rid it of potential eneimies / saboteurs killing thousands of civilians in the process. Please don't tell me that the US military isn't in Colombia to protect the oil companies there and the lucrative CIA cocanine trade. Because if you do, it's you who doesn't have a clue.

“I spent 33 years in the Marines. Most of my time being a high-class muscle man for Big Business, for Wall Street and the bankers. In short, I was a racketeer for capitalism. “I helped purify Nicaragua for the international banking house of Brown Brothers in 1909-1912. I helped make Mexico and especially Tampico safe for American oil interests in 1914. I brought light to the Dominican Republic for American sugar interests in 1916. I helped make Haiti and Cuba a decent place for the National City Bank boys to collect revenue in. I helped in the rape of half a dozen Central American republics for the benefit of Wall Street. “War is a racket.”

General Smedley D. Butler

former U.S. Marine Commandant

in Common Sense

November 1935

That was 1935. Things have only gotten more sophisticated and more profitable.

Get on the same page.

Ah, excuse me. Thread topic is living in Thailand during WWIII.

And what, pray tell, does moon debunking, anarchists, and debunking in general have to do with the topic?

The point I trying to make is I think English teachers are being exploited by the upper class in Thai society to educate their children, while at the same time, for the most part, they don't want lower class farang involved with their families.

Too many English teachers have an elevated view of their perceived status within Thai society. Time for a reality check folks.

I now know what it is like being part of the exploited class. Never felt that way in the US. Always thought there was a way up and out. There is still a way up and out of low class work for farang in Thailand, (teaching English) but difficult due to the many barriers put in our way. Some due to discrimination, some due to xenophophia, some to jealousy, and the fact that an English teacher can never save enough of his/her salary to acquire capital with which to start a business, once an English teacher, almost always an English teacher and the resulting Honda and rented house and living on rice an noodles.

The US has no-fault divorce. Thailand has no-fault everything. If a Thai and a farang have a dispute, farang lose. Hard to do business in that climate.

I notice in all this that no-one has brought up the question of sibling or parental pressures on the girls involved......

In one case (years ago) the girl was literally sold out from under me, and sent off to marry a retiree in Europe because he paid the family a handsome sum for her

More recently, dating a mid to senior level bank exec, her family ordered her to dump me because I was a university teacher = low salaried compared to all of them

More common than we might think. These are two examples we know about. The Thai upper class don't want their daughters marrying 'down' and sorry to put it to you waied ben Kruus but University teachers don't fill the bill, much less grade school teachers.

Whether you ride a Suzuki or Honda motorcycle (gotcha!)

Get over it.

I am not  saying  pull out of  Saudi , why  not  invade  it? Alot more  terirosts in Saudi than there  were  in Iraq . I  still find it  very ironic that terriosm was a main reason to invade

bin Laden claims that the US and Israel are the world's biggest terrorists.

"As for their accusations of terrorizing the innocent, the children, and the women, these are in the category of 'accusing others with their own affliction in order to fool the masses.' The evidence overwhelmingly shows America and Israel killing the weaker men, women and children in the Muslim world and elsewhere. A few examples of this are seen in the recent Qana massacre in Lebanon, and the death of more than 600,000 Iraqi children because of the shortage of food and medicine which resulted from the boycotts and sanctions against the Muslim Iraqi people, also their withholding of arms from the Muslims of Bosnia-Herzegovina leaving them prey to the Christian Serbians who massacred and raped in a manner not seen in contemporary history. Not to forget the dropping of the H-bombs on cities with their entire populations of children, elderly, and women, on purpose, and in a premeditated manner as was the case with Hiroshima and Nagasaki." OSB [From The Washington Post 8/23/98]

"A wise man learns more from his enemies than a fool from his friends." Baltasar Gracian (1601 - 1657)

Take a deep breath you Americans and think about some of the things our Government has done to other people from their perspective. as articulated by bin Laden, now the "world's number one enemy." (Talk about a diversion!)

We talk alot about learning the Thai way of doing things or looking at things, the Thai culture, the Thai this and the Thai that. How about looking at the autrocities our Government has committed against other peoples 'for their own good." with no regard whatsoever for how they may think of what the US is doing.

If we wish to root out terrorism, why not invade America? Terrorist have been funded from there through the CIA and other agencies for decades, a well documented fact.

“The nationalist not only does not disapprove of atrocities committed by his own side, but he has a remarkable capacity for not even hearing about them.”

George Orwell

American troops are stationed on "Arab" soil at the invitation of the ruling authorities in those countries. Same as American workers "stationed" in Saudi and elsewhere in the middle east. Deal with it...

Well, 350, if we were to pull completely out of Saudi, that country would collapse.  They don't have a clue on how to do anything themselves - so there we are.

September 22, 2003

By DON VAN NATTA Jr. (New York Times)

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia, Sept. 18 — The last few American combat troops pulled out of the Prince Sultan Air Base here earlier this month, officially closing the Persian Gulf headquarters used by the Air Force during both Iraq wars and concluding a nearly 13-year run of extensive United States military operations in Saudi Arabia. US Troops Withdraw From Saudi Arabia

So there you are boon mee, behind the learning curve when it comes to Middle Eastern events. Been a year and SA hasn't collapsed. But mark one up for bin Laden, as one of his demands was that American troops withdraw from Arab soil.

Now, the question is for the critical thinkers among us, given the fact that US troops are in at least 130 of the 190 countries recognized by the United Nations, after 13 years, why did the US pull its troops out of SA?

Answer me this question One I have Pondered to myself Supposedly The Palestinian Jewish conflict is the backbone to the reason why these muslim extremists are fighting But why are they not attacking isreal?? Why are they in so many different countries?

And the muslim world was pissed off before the US started this war on terror.

The back bone is not the Palenstinian / Jewish conflict per se: Its the fact that the US supports Israel no matter what they do. And that American troops are stationed on Arab soil. Osama bin Laden has stated many times, that they want American troops out of Arab lands. That is what pisses them off the most, occupying their land.

"Any thief or criminal (referring to the American troops) or robber who enters another country (Arab) in order to steal (the oil) should expect to be exposed to murder at any time. Thousands of millions of Muslims are angry. The Americans should expect reactions from the Muslim world that are proportionate to the injustice they inflict.” December 23, 1998 OBL Time Magazine interview

So if bush lied Believe me he should go to jail but why isn't Mr. clinton behind bars??

Sadly, the character of our two most recent presidents is so bad, that both belong behind bars, but the character of the American people, particularly the members of Congress isn't any better, so our leaders can act as if they are above the law, which, for the most part, they are.

If you still think that WTC was committed by Al Qaeda and not by Cheney / Rumsfeld / Tenet / Franks and Company, then you are too stupid to be let near a voting machine.

1. The US government attacked our own land!!!! Give me a break

2. So Pearl harbor was attacked by americans flying japenese planes???

1. Yep, hold that thought. It will come in very handy as you digest the world's most important current events.

2. No, never said anything about Pearl Harbor. It's you who immediately went to some weird extreme erroneous analogy to try to discredit what was plainly stated as a fact. A government with the US government attacked the WTC and the Pentagon as justification to then attack Iraq and Iran next, not to mention Afghanistan.

And I believe we are in the midst of WWIII, started by the US to control the world's oil supply, among other things, antoher of which is to destroy Israel's enemies.

"Believe what you see, not what you think."

Must be a newbie. Do Thai's bleed when cut?

Yes, and if you run out in front of a truck, even though you are in another country and away from home, you will get ran over, and most likely die.

I've been teaching in Thailand for four years now and married to a Thai for three. I live in a nice house, have a motorcycle, soon upgrading to a car. And in general life has been pretty good to me out here.

If having a Suzuki motorycyle and a rented house is enough for you, then you've done well. Good for you. We're talking generalities here. There will be exceptions of course, which the more intelligent among us recognize.

However, there are a few, like john boy here, who thinks because someone brings up a topic for discussion, which was stated in the form of a question, that the proposer of the question must be "low brow, if not also low class, for all of his insecurity, inferiority-complex issues."

I just may be completely different from how you've got me all figured out to be. e.g.

I don't even molest little boys anymore and stop beating my wife when we divorced 10 years ago now.

Lighten up there john boy, its only a discussion.

Wow, another psychoanalyst among us low paid English teacher types. You are in the wrong profession if you can make such a diagnosis after only reading less than 7 pages of a thread in cyber space. And you didn't even need to meet me face to face. Move over Jung and Pavlov.

Is our 50 minutes up? Can I get off the cyber-couch now?

We just couldn't help ourselves, as you like to point out, we are not all that bright.

Yes, the average American isn't all that bright. Are you an average American?

Why not give us a couple of good reasons for going to war in Afghanistan and Iraq? Are you articulate enough to take on such an endeavor?

btw: anyone know if Thai troops are still in Iraq? Two Thais have been killed there so far.

Must be the same 50% of Americans who have been abducted by aliens sometime in their lives.

You'd better get on the same page my friend. The US attacked the WTC not some Arabs with boxcutters. The evidence is overwhelming. You've just haven't taken the time to investigate it. You've been living on the spoonfeeding you've been getting all your life from the major media outlets. Time to wean yourself from mother's milk and start digesting some solid food. Or, maybe (I doubt it though) you have looked into the greatest crime in American history, the government attacking its own people, and just can't accept the evidence. "Believe what you see, not what you think."

You laugh at the Americans who you think are paranoid. They are paranoid, the US government has trained them well. Now they are looking at that same government to protect them from a fabricated enemy useful for just such a purpose.

I laugh at you "ignorance is bliss" types running around thinking you're so cool because you live in another country and are sooooooo much smarter than most other people.

I wonder how much longer having an American passport is going to be an advantage? America is creating millions of enemies by the week. Every time the US kills a Iraqi or an Afghanistani, we make a entire family if not a clan of enemies. America is not winning the war in either Iraq or Afghanistan.

World War III is well underway. Reality is a bitch. Get familiar with it.

I postulate that it is entirely possible an upper class girl might date a young, chiselled ,drop-dead handsome, brad pitt esque, super hunk, english teacher

as opposed to some filthy, old, fat, smelly, bald slob with a few more G Notes in his wallet ???

Rather interesting how a Western girl brought up the chiselled looking brad pitt type man as opposed to the sensitive, caring family type man that most women actually prefer to settle down with.

I thought one of the good things about living in Thailand was that old, fat, bald slobs with a few G notes in his pocket could attract a woman, albeit low class?

Nah, their sh*t don't st*nk either, but they can be known to pick their nose.

1. To what extent is Thai Agriculture a form of Petro-culture ? Are oil based fertilizers indispensable in the rice cultivation ? I am not familiar with thai agricultural practices.

Most all fertilizers are petro based, another major problem should oil / oil products become scarce.

Kissinger was the plutocrat who gave the go-head to bomb the canals and dykes in Laos and Northern Vietnam during the US / Vietnam war. Tried to starve theVC out by destroying the water supply so they couldn't grow rice. Against the Geneva Convention that little move was - a war crime.

Those dams Laos and China want to build might end up causing a war in themselves.

Plastics all come from petro. Every new car tire takes 20 gallons of fuel to make. Each new car 80 gallons of fuel. China is expected to be producing 10 million cars a year within the next few years.

Believe you've been smoking a little too much Herb there, Nemesis

Although I'll agree we are in the midst of WW3...

50% of New Yorkers according to a recent Zogby poll think the US Government was complicit in the WTC demolition and 66% want renewed private investigations into 911.

They been smoking too much of that herb too I suppose?

Me thinks, with the US government attacking the WTC as a diversionary measure, to the un-declared war on "terrorism that will not end in our lifetimes," (Cheney) the invasion of Afghanistan, the undeclared war on Iraq, and the "dissuasion" policy being carried out against one nation after the other, has led me to believe we are in the midst of a world war.

Yes, it's only beginning. That's the bad part.

Some people say the war is being fought for basically two reasons: To eliminate Israel's enemies and gain a hegemony to better control Mid - East oil. You may agree or disagree with the above. And you may disagree we are in a war. Granted.

During wars, untold things happen. The oil supply may get cut off for an extended period of time, disrupting an entire society. Prices may rise dramatically, unemployment rise. due to layoffs due to uncertainity in the market place, lower demand, etc. We sometimes forget that just because something hasn't happened right here for a while, that it can't happen or won't happen. It can and it might. It is possible.

What this thread is about is if, [the biggest word in the English language,] if we are in the midst of a world wide war that may affect virtually every SEA country in some way, especially if there is a cut off of the supply of oil for any length of time, is Thailand a good country to be in and if so, why?

I submit it would be good mostly because it is still largely an agrcultural based society.

Just eating and having a place to stay becomes quite important during times of war.

Being married to a Thai farmers daughter might end up being the best thing you ever did.